The Difference Between Reality and Dreams
by SVUCSIWTRDOOLluver
Summary: Angsty, kinda E/O story, Olivia's not at work and the squad gets a call out to a scene, with the Chief of Detectives there. What had gone wrong? Chapter 3 is up, COMPLETE! R&R and enjoy!
1. Not So Happy Dreams

In the beginning, this is a very angst story, but it'll be a three chapter fic, I think, so hopefully it turns out all happy! But who knows, with my muse! Haha enjoy!

--

"It's 9 o'clock, how come Liv isn't in yet?" Munch questioned Elliot, who shrugged and checked his watch, saying,

"Good question. I don't know. She didn't call me."

"And she didn't call me." Cragen stated as he walked out of his office. Fin, Munch and Elliot looked at him, and he added, "We got a case."

"Me and Munch taking it?" Fin asked, assuming because Olivia wasn't there.

"No. We're all going. Homicide was taking it, but then they said it looked like the work of a serial killer we've been looking for."

"Which one?" Munch scoffed, knowing there were at least 5 serial killer cases open in SVU.

"The one where he slits the throat of a woman after he rapes her, but he redresses her so the cops on the scene never suspect rape until the autopsy."

"Is he the one who's victimizes any type? He doesn't just specialize in brunettes or blondes, right?" Fin said, slowly recalling the case.

"Yeah." Cragen said, grateful for the chance to finally catch this guy, they didn't even know his name, but Cragen was bound and determined to catch him this time.

"Then let's go." Elliot said, feeling the same thing Cragen was feeling.

--

Fin and Munch rode in one car, and Cragen rode with Elliot in Olivia's place. "I'll probably get an email later about her being in the ER." Cragen muttered.

"Knowing Liv, you're probably right."

Olivia never took a day off, unless she was contagious or in the hospital. Even then, she tried her hardest to work.

They pulled up at the crime scene, and they both spotted the Chief of Detective's pacing outside the tape. "What the hell...?" Cragen said, getting out.

"Don!" The Chief exclaimed, walking over to him.

"What the hell is going on here?" Don asked, and the Chief looked confused.

"I...Don't you know?"

"Know what?"

"Oh my God," The Chief exclaimed, and then whipped around and yelled, "Who's the incompetent idiot who called SVU but didn't tell them who the vic was?"

When he didn't get an answer, he muttered to himself, "There will be hell to pay later, mark my words,"

"Chief?" Don questioned, absolutely confused now.

By this time, Elliot, Fin and Munch were standing in a group a few feet away from the Chief and Cragen, and just as Don asked his question, Elliot looked over the crime scene and spotted the vic.

"Brown hair, from the looks of it. Since this is gonna be our case, we better go check it out, don't you think?" Elliot said to Munch and Fin, who nodded. They started walking over to the victim and under the tape. All three of them noticed the looks they were getting, and it was more than a little confusing to them.

"I'm echoing the captain, what the hell is going on? You'd think we lost a member of our own..." Fin trailed off as they got close enough to the victim to see her face.

The woman lying on the cold, hard ground had shoulder-length brown hair, and her body was splayed with arms and legs spread. Her clothes were neat, but a little scuffed, and her throat was slit clean open. And she had the all too familiar face of Olivia Benson.

"Liv..." Elliot whispered, not believing it. Refusing it to believe it.

"No freaking way," Fin said, and Munch just gaped. It was Elliot who finally took action, bolting towards Olivia and Melinda, who was kneeling by her body.

"OLIVIA!" He screamed, and when he got to her body, Melinda stood up and blocked him, saying,

"Elliot, gloves! We need the evidence, Elliot; you need to put on gloves!"

Elliot was almost past listening, but he blindly put the pair of latex gloves on that Melinda handed him.

Cragen was alerted by Elliot scream, and heartbreak filled his eyes as he stared at the Chief. "Olivia?" He questioned, and the Chief could only nod, putting his hand on Cragen shoulder and saying,

"I'm so sorry, Don. Detective Benson..."

"Save it for the funeral, Chief." Don said harshly and started the walk to Olivia's body. He quickened his pace until he was running, and he stood there with Fin and Munch while Elliot knelt next to her body, her face in his hands. His whispered pleading could be heard by all three of them, and Melinda, who stood with them.

"Livvie, dear God why you? Why did the bastard have to choose you?" They could all hear the tears in his voice, as he said the words that were running through their emotion-riddled minds.

"Olivia...Liv please...don't be gone...Livvie...LIV!" Elliot said, starting out as a whisper, getting louder until he was shouting.

"Liv!" He shouted, thrashing around. Suddenly he realized he was lying down, and his eyes were shut tightly. He forced himself to open his eyes, and all he saw was a ceiling and darkness. He felt warm, but it was December in New York already. After he sat bolt upright, he realized he was in his bed, and it was all a nightmare, none of that had really happened.

"Dear God..." He muttered, reaching over to his bedside table and grabbed his bottle of water, downing it all in one gulp. He laid back down on the bed, blinking his eyes a few times, shaking his head and rubbing his eyes, desperately trying to get the images of his partner lying dead in Central Park. He eventually fell into a restless sleep, with images of a funeral, and just before his alarm woke him up, images of his partner lying dead in a casket. He was glad when his alarm finally woke him up, and he didn't have to go back into his nightmare.

--

Elliot walked into work looking like hell from his bad night. Fin and Munch immediately ragged him about it for a half hour, and that's when they realized that Olivia still hadn't come in. "Wonder where she is..." Fin mused, and Cragen walked in, saying,

"She hasn't called me or anything. I'll check my email when we get back from Central Park."

"We? Case?" Elliot questioned, a slight sinking feeling in his stomach, but he ignored it. They all piled into 2 cars, Elliot and Cragen in one, Munch and Fin in the other. They drove to the scene in Central Park, and the Chief of Detectives was pacing the crime scene tape. Elliot slowly started recognizing the scene, but he didn't believe in premonitions, so he pushed those thoughts aside.

"What the hell...?" Cragen muttered, getting out and striding over to the Chief. While they talked, Elliot got out and stood off to the side with Fin and Munch. They eventually decided to make their way to the victim, as it was clearly going to be their case. Elliot looked over and saw the Chief yell to the general scene, and finally realized that his dream was really coming true, in every sense of the word. Without thinking, Elliot ran over to the brunette victim, his mind screaming, "NO! NOT OLIVIA!"

--

Well, wasn't that a cliff-hanger? This will probably turn out to be a three chapter fic, and thank you so much for reading! Adios for now!


	2. Support And Protect

Chapter 2 is up! A resolution of the cliff-hanger of the last chapter is coming up! But the danger doesn't stop there…enjoy!

He skidded to a stop next to the vic and looked desperately down at her face. With a jolt of relief, he realized that it wasn't Olivia. "Know her?" An angel's voice said from behind him, and he whipped around, seeing his partner walking towards him. She had obviously seen his sprint, and he sighed in relief, striding over to her and shaking his head, saying,

"Nah, just, just thought I did. Never seen her before."

"Me either." Olivia replied, a sad tone in her voice that Elliot always saw when they had a new victim.

"We got a name yet?" Elliot said, turning to face Melinda, and Melinda said, "Her ID says Melina Emerson."

"Thanks," Elliot said, turning back to face Olivia and asking, "Up for the notification?"

"We'd better." She said with a sigh, and the pair walked back to the car. When they got in the car, Olivia said, "You sure you're okay? You seemed a little freaked out there."

"I'm fine," Elliot said, looking over at her before backing out and driving.

"Yeah right. You left before you even got her next of kin."

"I know," Elliot said quietly, and kept driving. His tone of voice made Olivia keep quiet, knowing something was bothering Elliot deeply, and he would tell her as soon as they got wherever they were going. Olivia was a bit surprised when he pulled up at their favorite coffee shop, but she didn't complain as he got out, and she followed him. They walked in silently and sat at their normal booth, and the waitress brought them coffee. After the waitress left, Elliot stared into the coffee that was the same color as Olivia's eyes. He started talking, saying, "I had a dream last night, and it was exactly like what happened this morning. We went to a scene that we knew nothing about, and you weren't there. We pulled up and went to see the vic. But the vic wasn't Melina Emerson."

"Who was it? One of your kids?" Olivia asked gently, her hand reaching across the table for his.

"No," He said slowly, raising his tortured eyes up to meet his. "It was you."

Olivia's eyes widened with shock, but then softened as she stood up, tossing some money on the table for the coffee. She kept a hold of Elliot's hand and led him past the car and he remembered that Olivia's apartment was only a few blocks away from the coffee shop. She brought him up to her apartment and opened the door. He walked in, barely keeping his emotions in check as she shut and locked the door. He turned around and suddenly found Olivia's arms wrapped around his neck. He encircled her waist gently as she said quietly, "I'm still here, El. I'm alive."

"I know. I think I know." Elliot said quietly, and then felt the first of the tears fall. He fought them like hell, but they fell anyways, and he crushed Olivia's body to his, needing to know that she was living and breathing and still in his life. A sob ripped from his throat, and Olivia held him tighter as he broke down in her arms as they stood in the middle of her living room. She brought him to her place, in private, because she knew her kick-ass partner all to well. He wouldn't want to be seen breaking down, not at the stationhouse or in public.

It was killing Olivia inside to hear her strong-as-steel partner break down, but she said nothing, knowing that her mere presence was all he needed, not words. Her hands rubbed soothingly on his back as his sobs subsided, but the tears continued to flow. She realized that it wasn't just his nightmare; it was a buildup of the past year. Kathleen getting into trouble, Dickie getting into trouble, all the fights with Kathy and finally, the divorce, which had been finalized about a month before. Kathy had taken Eli, Dickie and Lizzy to Miami, where she was now living. Kathleen had stayed behind, as Kathy believed Elliot could help her more than she could, and Maureen chose to stay behind, as she was going to college in New York. Kathleen and Maureen lived in Maureen's apartment, and Elliot lived alone, as he could bring himself to live in the same house where three of his kids and his now-ex-wife had lived. It was too heart-breaking for him. And on top of all that, he had dreamed that his partner had been killed.

Elliot managed to stop the tears and drew back a little, wiping his eyes. "You gonna be okay?" Olivia asked gently, and Elliot nodded once, looking her straight in her eyes and said quietly,

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. You obviously needed that." She said, her hands resting on his arms. He nodded with a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

The partners turned and walked out, going to finish the rest of the case and catch the evil bastard who had killed Melina Emerson, as it turned out he was a serial killer, and just killed women who he saw and took a liking to. That's what made him so dangerous, he could strike at any time, and the detectives had no way of knowing who he was going to grab next.

After a few months and more than 10 women had turned up, they finally caught a break. The killer had gotten a little bit sloppy and left a drop of semen in his latest victim, Virginia Harlem. Melinda sent it to the lab, and SVU finally had his name: Jonathon Erikson. They searched his apartment and car, and found his scrapbook. It was a book, with two pages for each woman, the first was the woman doing everyday things, proving he followed them, and the second page had the woman bound, gagged, and then with her throat slit. It was more than enough evidence to send him to jail for the rest of his life, if he was lucky. Alex was planning on going for the death penalty, and she felt sure she could get it: as long as they found him. This was not going to be an easy task. At least, before he killed another victim. George had predicted that Jon was building up, which meant he was heading for his 'big finish' and then be done. But what they were scared of was the 'big finish'.

A week passed, and no new victims showed up, for which SVU was grateful for. They worked all week, trying to either catch Jon in a trap or figure out where he could be hiding. They searched over a dozen apartments during that week, and all of them had come up empty. It was also during that week that Olivia noticed someone was following her.

When she revealed that suspicion to George, he immediately started worrying. "That's what I was afraid of. Jon's going after you for his 'big finish', raping and murdering a cop would give him a thrill unprecedented to the others, and then he'd retire."

"Well, then, this is great, right? Set a trap for him, he's finished," Olivia said, pushing the slight tremor of fear away and thinking positive. They were going to catch this guy, no matter what.

"I suppose so..." George replied, and then called Don, who almost ordered protection detail on Olivia, but then realized that would tip Jon off. Instead, he had Elliot stay with her in her apartment, and had a few undercover cops take positions temporarily as Olivia's building's new door opener and a magazine vendor near the back. A few days passed, and Olivia was feeling like she had absolutely no privacy.

One morning, Elliot woke up to his alarm and got up, hearing the shower running. He figured Olivia was in there, so he started breakfast. It was their routine, whoever got up first got in the shower, while the other made breakfast. Elliot had eaten, and the shower was still running. Worry began to trickle through Elliot's mind, and though he felt like a total peeper, he carefully opened the door and peeked inside. He saw the shower curtain was pulled closed, and though it made him feel really bad, he cleared his throat and called, "Liv? You okay?"

When he didn't get an answer, he walked over to the curtain and pulled it open with a tug.

She wasn't there.

Yet another cliff-hanger! I'm sure you all hate me for leaving you hanging like this, but I promise, I'll update as soon as I get this next chapter written! Thanks so much for reading, and adios for now!


	3. Moonlit Movies

Well, this is the last chapter, and now you'll find out whether Elliot can save Olivia, or if he'll be too late…enjoy!

"Damn it!" Elliot roared, fear gripping his heart as he whipped out his cell and hit speed dial for Cragen. "Cragen."

"It's Elliot. Olivia's gone."

"What?!"

"I woke up, the shower was running. I checked after a half hour and she wasn't in there."

"Ah, goddamn it!" Cragen muttered, and hung up. Elliot understood, he had to get the information out to every cop and news station available; maybe someone had seen something and could possibly help them out. Elliot refused to let himself think about the possibility that Jon had gotten Olivia and had already killed her, but he thought logically and knew that Jon kept his victims for at least 3 days, the first to leave them alone, second to rape, third to kill. They had at least one day before Jon would start destroying the Olivia Benson he knew.

When he got into the squadroom, Munch and Fin were already there, taking tip calls from citizens in New York. Elliot hoped that some of them were useful, because there was no way in hell he was going to let Jon lay a hand on his partner. No way.

It took them a day to get an actual tip that helped them find Jon and Olivia. "Hey, Captain, I got a call from a woman who says she was Jon's ex-girlfriend." Munch called.

Elliot and Cragen both rushed over to Munch's side and Cragen took the phone. "This is Captain Cragen."

"Captain, Jon and I used to go to his old abandoned movie theatre on the outskirts of NYC, it's called Moonlit Movies, I believe. He was fascinated with that place, I thought it was creepy."

"Thank you, Miss..."

"Ella. Ella Pandora."

"Thank you, Miss Pandora." Cragen said, and hung up. "Moonlit Movies. Get me an address." He barked out, and Fin quickly pulled up the address and directions. He printed off two copies, gave one to Elliot and kept one for himself and Munch. "I'll call backup." Munch said as Elliot and Cragen rushed out. Fin and Munch followed in their own car a few minutes later.

It took Elliot about 30 frustrating minutes to get there, and as they got close, Cragen said hoarsely, "El, we have to consider the possibility that he, that he raped Olivia already."

"I know." Elliot spit out through clenched teeth, and Cragen sighed, replying,

"If he did then she's a victim, El, and you need to treat her like one. Not like your partner. Got it?"

Elliot knew Cragen meant that he couldn't overwhelm her; by demanding if she was ok, hugging her, even touching her at all. "I got it, Captain."

"Good. Then drive." Cragen said, and Elliot floored it, hopefully cutting their time down by a little.

Elliot pulled up with a screech outside the abandoned movie house. It was run down and very beat up, but looked sturdy enough. Elliot and Cragen both drew their guns, but hesitated in opening the door until they heard Olivia's scream. With no hesitation they kicked the door open and stormed the place, with flashlights and with their guns raised. Olivia kept screaming, but the sound was muffled. It was enough to know that she was somewhere in the back, so that's where they went. Finally, just as they heard sirens, they found the room where Jon and Olivia were.

"I guess I don't have time to finish up, my dear," Jon said pleasantly, and Elliot's heart was being ripped to pieces as he heard his partner sobbing. "Don't take it personally, but I'm afraid our time's almost up. It'll be quick, I promise."

"Is that what you told the others?" Olivia demanded, forcing the tears to stop.

"Oh no, they suffered. I slit their throat slowly, watched them bleed out. But I'll cut you a little deeper, it'll be less than a minute, and it'll be like falling asleep. Don't be afraid, there's a better world waiting for you, better than the ugly one you're living in now."

"I happen to like my life."

Jon laughed, and Elliot's blood ran cold as he heard the sound of a knife being scraped a few times. "Well, my dear, that's what we all think. Until we get there and it's better there than it is here."

Elliot gestured to go inside, and Cragen shook his head, mouthing, "Backup."

"Who cares? He's going to kill her!" Elliot said in a voice just under a whisper.

"Just wait a few more moments, El," Cragen said, though he obviously didn't want to wait.

"No," Elliot mouthed, and he kicked the door open, rushing inside and yelling, "NYPD!"

He saw a complete torture room; a wall filled with knives on the left, and on the right was a picture wall with a few shelves with cameras on them. The floor had a table on it where Olivia lay, only in her underwear. She was bound to the table, and Jon was standing over her with a knife at her throat. Jon's face turned red with rage and he screamed, "You're not supposed to be here yet!'

"Too bad, pal. Drop the knife." Elliot demanded, fear gripping him tightly.

A feral grin appeared on Jon's face and he said, "Fine. I'll drop it." Elliot realized the implications of his words too late, and Jon released the knife. It hurtled downward and plunged into Olivia's neck.

"NO!" Elliot screamed, dashing over to his partner's side and seeing the knife had just grazed Olivia's throat, but it was already covered in blood. Cragen cuffed Jon as Elliot covered Olivia's neck with his hands, trying to stop the bleeding.

"It's not that bad, El," Olivia rasped, and Elliot just shook his head, not trusting himself to speak at that point. He pressed down, his hands trembling as he fought the urge to put as much pressure as he could to stop the bleeding. It was her neck, and if he did that, her neck would be crushed, and she wouldn't be able to breathe.

"Don't talk, Liv," Cragen said, already speaking rapidly into his phone to get a bus there ASAP. Cragen reached down and gently touched Olivia's face so she would look at him. "Did he rape you, Olivia?"

Her eyes filled with tears, but she blinked them away and shook her head violently, saying, "No, but he came pretty damn close. You guys showed up just in time." Elliot couldn't take it anymore and hissed,

"Olivia. Shut up." Every time she talked, the wound kept bleeding. He knew that if she would stop talking, the bleeding would slowly stop and he could stop freaking out about losing his partner and best friend. Olivia shot him a glare but kept her mouth shut. Within a minute, Fin and Munch came rushing in the door, followed by uniforms and paramedics. The paramedics kneeled next to Olivia and took over for Elliot, while Fin and Munch took Jon into custody, as Cragen had cuffed him to the desk and told him that if he moved an inch, he wouldn't hesitate to empty all of his bullets in his magazine into his chest.

As Jon was hauled away, all of them were confident that Alex was going to get him the death penalty.

Olivia silently walked to the group, consisting of Cragen, Munch, Fin and Elliot. "You okay, baby girl?" Fin asked quietly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. She nodded with a sigh, saying hoarsely,

"This stupid bandage makes me look like a wimp."

Munch laughed, and rubbed her shoulder, saying, "Naw, it makes you look tough. We all just keep staring at it because it's a reminder of how close we came to losing you," His voice quieted near the end, and Olivia squeezed his hand, murmuring,

"Well, obviously I'm still here."

"Thank God," Cragen said, rubbing his face with his hand. Elliot stood silent, but then grabbed Olivia's arm gently and pulled her over to his car. Cragen looked at them, and then followed Fin and Munch to their car.

When Elliot got to the car, he spun Olivia around and pinned her against the car; before she could protest he crushed his lips to hers. Within a few moments Olivia stopped fighting back and fought to pull Elliot closer to her. "I almost lost you," Elliot breathed as he pulled back so they could breathe.

"You didn't. Now take me home, Elliot," Olivia murmured, and Elliot opened the door for her. When he pulled up to her apartment, Olivia grabbed his hand and didn't let go until they got inside, Olivia felt herself being pulled against Elliot's chest. He held onto her for a long moment, and then looked down at her. She reached up and kissed him softly, and Elliot mumbled against her lips,

"God, I love you, Olivia,"

"Love you too, Elliot," She whispered, pulling him towards her bedroom.

The end of this 3-shot! I hope you enjoyed the major angst, and then a very happy ending! Thanks so much for reading, and adios for now


End file.
